Friday, January 11, 2013

Mossback on Why Spokane is Central

You cannot do much blogging about Washington State history without coming across the wonderful work of Knute Berger--or "Mossback" as he would prefer. Berger has been blogging and writing about Pacific Northwest history for years. His focus is usually on Seattle and the Puget Sound, but sometimes he takes a broader view as with his "Heritage Turkey Awards."

I had the pleasure of finally getting to meet Berger in person at the National Trust Conference in Spokane last fall. He was clearly and openly taken with our city--an unusual response from a west-sider. (I maintain that they are all secretly impressed with Spokane and would move here in a minute but for fear of the mocking from their hipster friends.)

Spokane recently played host to the prestigious National Preservation Conference, put on by the National Trust for Historic Preservation. Heritage advocates from all across the country, including the storm battered East Coast, made their way to the capitol of the Inland Empire. It was a chance for Spokane to show off its preservation efforts and architectural legacy, which has been key to revitalizing its downtown.
Go and enjoy the whole piece, a powerful argument for the importance of historic preservation in reviving American cites, with Spokane as exhibit #1.

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My name is Larry Cebula and this is my professional blog. I am a Public Historian at Eastern Washington University and Assistant Digital Archivist at the Washington State Digital Archives--neither of which necessarily endorse the views here! I use this blog to explore the intersections of public and digital history. The focus is on the Inland Northwest but we may venture further afield on occasion. Here is my mission statement. Email me at LarryCebula [at] gmail [dot] com.